


Beneath the Stars

by Lexx



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: F/F, First Kiss, Wandering the Spirit World and being cute and awkward about it, and the rating is very likely to go up as the fic progresses!, basically i'm writing this to cope with my absolute joy over the finale
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-12-24
Updated: 2014-12-24
Packaged: 2018-03-03 05:03:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2839049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lexx/pseuds/Lexx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Their journey is aimless, as Korra guides Asami through the flowering field and into a copse of spindly trees. They stop every now and again, with Korra showing Asami small things that she had discovered during her past visits into the Spirit World—long crocuses that become butterfly spirits with just a gentle touch, and draping leaves that shimmer and sparkle with silver light when brushed against by a hand. Asami marvels at each small wonder, and every incredulous smile makes Korra think <i>yes, this is right.</i> This is what Asami needs in order to escape from her grief. This is what Korra needs in order to heal—a vacation, she tells herself, a small break is what she needs, but a smaller, deeper part of her knows the truth.</p><p>She needs Asami right now.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Beneath the Stars

She pauses before the spirit portal. Its appearance has not changed since the moment Kuvira forcefully ripped apart the planes of existence—the energy was wildly volatile at first, but it has calmed now, contained neatly within the portal. Korra had felt it humming through her body all the way on Air Temple Island, and each step had brought her closer to its power until it trembled through every cell in her body with a powerful roar. She witnessed its birth; she knows, on some level, that she will always be connected to it, just as she is forever connected to the Spirit World. Its light shines upward into the sky, a tall, golden plinth of simmering energy that echoes through Korra’s body. It does not hurt her; she was born to hold its power within herself, for she is the bridge, a mortal of a thousand lives. It hums in her veins, welling in her fingertips, welcoming her back.

She glances over at Asami, smiling almost nervously. Almost as though she could sense Korra’s worry, Asami meets her gaze, smiling gently back. There is no hesitation in her pale eyes. She does not seem to feel the harshness of the energy—few humans sense it like Korra can, after all. The golden light plays over her lovely face and glossy hair, and Korra swallows hard, her hand reaching out before she can process the movement.

Asami takes it within her own, calm and steady. Her grip is firm. Relief pulses through Korra, stronger than the current of energy from the spirit portal, and together, they walk forth to meet the light.

She turns to face her friend, and Asami catches her other hand, and Korra searches Asami’s face as the portal envelops them. Still no hesitation, no fear. _She trusts me,_ Korra realizes—Asami’s trust is implicit, unwavering. They slip from the mortal plane, and she intertwines her fingers with Asami’s, and Asami lets her, squeezing her hands playfully in return. And then they are suspended, for a breathless, weightless moment, in between the worlds.

Korra is pure light, soft blue and white-hot in her core. She looks at her hands, her wrists, lit up with glowing white veins. _Raava?_ she asks within her mind, and she almost feels the deity within her smile.

 _Korra,_ Raava says affectionately by way of reply, her voice warm with love. She grins widely at that, reassured to feel Raava’s spirit within her, and looks up. Asami is glowing with oversaturated violet light, like any other mortal untouched by spirit energy; she looks, for a moment, like Kuvira had, but where Kuvira had been still and unconscious, Asami is blinking and breathing, looking around her in awe. Her hair floats around her head in a shimmering, purple cloud; her eyes find Korra’s again, shining and wide with delight, and she shapes a single word with her mouth:

_Korra._

Korra’s answering smile is so wide that she feels her cheeks might be in danger of falling off. She feels gravity gradually increase again, and she readies herself to touch the ground. Golden light surrounds them; her feet lightly touch the ground. Asami stumbles slightly, however, and Korra instinctually tugs at her hands, pulling her close. Somehow, Asami’s arms are around her waist, and Korra’s palms are flat on her shoulder blades, and Asami is breathing lightly against her ear, and she thinks, _I’ve nearly died over and over and I’ve faced down enemies more ferocious than most warriors see in a single lifetime and this—this might be the hardest thing I’ve ever done._ She knows how she feels, but she has no idea how to act, or what to say.

“You’re not even a little scared?” she mumbles into Asami’s shoulder instead, feeling a little bit breathless and bewildered, and Asami laughs, pulling away from their unplanned embrace.

“Of course not,” she replies, her hands on Korra’s shoulders. She keeps eye contact with Korra—her face is so sincere that it tugs at Korra’s heart. A good-humored smile plays around her lips. “I’m with you, aren’t I?”

Korra’s eyes widen, and she grins back, a little bashfully. “Yeah—bridge between the humans and spirits and all that.”

“Precisely,” Asami says, releasing her. She steps back and looks around, and the delight on her face makes Korra’s heart sing. “It’s… _wow_ , Korra.”

“Yeah,” Korra breathes back happily, taking it in. Before, she’d only had eyes for Kuvira’s grief; now she allows herself to truly admire where the portal had taken them. The Spirit World unfurls before the two women, lush with colors far more vibrant than anywhere in the human world. During times of turmoil, the sky had been overcast with bruised, violent colors, pulsating red and violet and gray-blue and emerald, a rainbow of unsettling hues cast chaotically into the same clouds. Now, it is clear and bright overhead, glittering with breathtaking clusters of stars. The clearing is fringed with gnarled trees, their sharp, strange boughs reaching for the sky—they are similar in shape to the great Tree of Time. The ground here is flat and wide, every inch of it covered in flowers that rustle lightly, moved by a gentle breeze cast by the portal that hums at their backs.

A faint glow catches her attention. Spirits of all shapes and sizes have crept closer, eying Korra; some seem nervous about approaching the newest portal, while a few of the larger spirits break from the ring they have formed, prowling nearer. “The Avatar,” she hears them whisper, a soft murmur that reaches her in a gentle wave.

“Hello,” she calls to them, and a few give fluttering laughs, delighted by her acknowledgement. Others look on in disdain, as many spirits tend to do, and she smiles wryly at them. “Enjoying the new portal?”

“Human affairs are not within our realm of concern,” snarls back a foxlike creature with many legs; a red, fleshy sail unfurls on his back, pulsing with light. “But you have meddled with the planes of existence, Avatar, and we find that most unwelcome.”

“Hey—I’m sorry,” she says, holding her hands up in surrender. “What happened was the fault of a woman named Kuvira. The portal was created by accident.”

“Accident or no, our home is disturbed,” hisses another spirit, spindly and birdlike. “Will humans be wandering in willy-nilly now?” Its red eyes fix upon Asami. “The Spirit World does not exist for their play.”

Korra straightens, glaring at them. “That isn’t your call,” she informs them, raising her voice in irritation. “Look, if you get to enjoy the human world, then any human that wishes to visit your realm ought to be welcome. And if they’re not welcome, _I’ll_ be hearing about it.”

The second spirit hisses again, but there is a flicker of fear in its eyes. One by one, the spirits began to peel away, until only a handful of smaller spirits remain. “Friendly greeting,” she mutters, crossing her arms.

Asami places a placating hand on her elbow. “I’m sure they’re just a little scared right now,” she says. “It was definitely an unexpected outcome.”

Korra relaxes and turns to meet her gaze. “Yeah. I… _am_ a little nervous that humans might start wandering in and out of the spirit world, though,” she confesses. “It’s not always the best place for people to be.” She remembers, for a moment, Vaatu and the imbalanced, dark spirits; she remembers Jinora’s spirit being stolen. “There are a few malevolent spirits lurking in here—not _dark_ spirits,” she explains quickly, as Asami frowns, “but very old, very powerful spirits that don’t care for humans.” She smiles weakly. “Arrogant jerks.”

Asami smiles too, and tugs at Korra’s arm, pulling it to her so she can link her elbow around it. Her free hand comes to grasp lightly at Korra’s forearm. “Okay,” she says, smiling, her green eyes glittering almost mischievously in the golden light. “Show me around, _Avatar_ Korra.” The flirty note to her words makes Korra’s stomach do a somersault.

She smiles broadly despite how nervous she feels and gestures grandly ahead of them with her free arm. “Right this way, Miss Sato,” she says, and they walk into the night.

Their journey is aimless, as Korra guides Asami through the flowering field and into a copse of spindly trees. They stop every now and again, with Korra showing Asami small things that she had discovered during her past visits into the Spirit World—long crocuses that become butterfly spirits with just a gentle touch, and draping leaves that shimmer and sparkle with silver light when brushed against by a hand. Asami marvels at each small wonder, and every incredulous smile makes Korra think _yes, this is right._ This is what Asami needs in order to escape from her grief. This is what Korra needs in order to heal—a vacation, she tells herself, a small break is what she needs, but a smaller, deeper part of her knows the truth.

She needs Asami right now.

When Asami takes her hand again, she grins, and she can’t make herself stop. Asami smiles demurely at her and then goes back to absorbing the lustrous scenery around them. Overhead, spirits skitter along the boughs, trailing after them curiously. Korra makes a face at one, and it gasps; its companion laughs, and she chuckles too, unable to contain her good mood. The forest around them glows and shifts through a spectrum of calm blues and greens, offset by violently bright fungi and electric-blue ferns.

They talk about small things, lapsing in and out of pleasant silence. About Prince Wu, and his decision to abolish the Earth Kingdom monarchy in favor of independent states; about the wedding, and their happiness for Varrick and Zhu Li. Korra is careful to skirt topics involving Future Industries, because she knows Asami’s grief is still fresh, and though she has been the sole leader of the company for years, she knows it’s likely a painful reminder for her of her father. It’s easier for them to talk about happy things.

After a while, though, Asami says, “What happened to Kuvira?”

Korra looks down. “Beifong took her. She’ll be in Republic City for a while, under Su’s surveillance. Then they’re moving her to a special prison, like Zaheer and the others.”

Asami’s grip on her hand tightens. “A special prison? Is that necessary?”

“I don’t know.” Korra glances up at her. “It’ll be made of platinum, probably, so she can’t bend her way out. I know she’s cooperative right now, but…what if it doesn’t last? I want to believe she isn’t as dangerous as Zaheer, but…”

“She leveled her spirit weapon right at Bataar Jr.,” Asami finishes grimly. “And she had no qualms about killing anyone that stood in her way.”

 _Like my father._ Asami doesn’t say it aloud, but Korra hears her unspoken words ringing within the silence. She weaves her fingers through Asami’s, and Asami squeezes her hand again, just like she had in the spirit portal. “I’m sorry,” she says, and Korra leaps to reassure her.

“No—I shouldn’t have—”

“It’s okay.” Asami stops walking and smiles at her. The expression doesn’t quite reach the sadness in her eyes, but she looks very sincere regardless. She reaches out and takes Korra’s other hand, and then stares at their interlocked fingers for a long moment. “I’m glad you took me here, Korra. I’m glad I don’t have to be by myself.”

Korra nods, swallowing past the lump in her throat. “I’m here for you,” she says, just like she said on the steps of Air Temple Island, and she really means it. She knows it’s not her job or place to try and fix Asami; she knows healing will come slowly to her, but it _will_ come, and she knows, if Asami will let her, that she will stay with her every day until the grief that plagues her is no longer so terrible— _like Asami tried to do for me,_ she realizes belatedly, thinking of how Asami offered to come to the South Pole with her.

“Thank you,” Asami says, looking up. Her eyes are a little watery, but her smile is steady.

Korra’s heart skips a beat. She can see tears on Asami’s lashes. Her eyes are large and lovely; she’s beautiful, even when she’s so deeply sad. She realizes that the silence between them feels heavy; she realizes that Asami might be giving her a cue that she’s not quite sure how to read.

“Thank you for coming with me,” she says lamely, and just like that, she’s chased the moment away.

Asami laughs, and Korra feels heat rush into her face. “You don’t have to look so…so stricken,” she tells the Avatar, still laughing, and pulls a hand away from Korra’s to wipe at her eyes. When she lowers her hand again, she’s smiling, and Korra feels her fingers lace through her own once more. “Am I making you nervous?” Despite her kind expression, there’s a small, worried indent between her immaculate eyebrows. Korra suddenly feels short and uncoordinated and desperately anxious.

“N-no!” Korra gasps. If her face wasn’t flushed before, it’s blistering with heat now. “I mean, I…I’m kind of nervous, because I don’t really know what to do o-or what you’re expecting, exactly, but I really l—”

She breaks off, suddenly too anxious to speak, and half-turns away. Asami, however, does not relinquish Korra’s hands, thereby limiting her escape.

“I like you, Korra,” she says.

It takes a minute for Korra’s mind to scramble back up to speed with the present, and when it does, she whips around to meet Asami’s eyes.

“Really?” she says. It sounds a bit strangled to her own ears.

“Yes,” Asami replies, and the worried indent between her eyebrows deepens. “Is that…okay?”

A thought strikes her. _She’s nervous too_.

“ _Yes_! I mean, of course it’s okay! It’s way more than okay!” She takes a shaky breath. “I’m—okay. Let me backtrack a little.” Asami laughs, and she smiles nervously up at her. “I’m crazy about you.”

The smile on Asami’s face is a better reward for her honesty than she could have ever imagined. She shivers a little. “I’m crazy about you, too,” Asami replies sweetly. She lifts their entangled hands and presses a kiss to Korra’s fingers. “And,” she says, lowering her arm, her eyes on their hands, “I don’t expect anything of you. I just want to be with you, here, right now. No pressure.” Her eyes flick back to Korra’s. “I don’t want to make you nervous.”

“You don’t,” Korra says in relief. “I have just…I’ve historically been the terrible one in relationships, and I’m afraid that I’ll screw everything up.” She doesn’t say _like I did with Mako_ , because Asami knows, and the concern on her face is sympathetic.

She shakes her head. “You haven’t done anything wrong. I’ll _tell_ you if you do something wrong.” The corner of her lip quirks upward in a smile, and Korra smiles with her. “And then we can talk about it. Together.” She doesn’t say anything about Mako, but Korra understands—communication is vital, and Asami has received very little of it in the past. Korra, too, had once been too hotheaded to talk things through; but she’s also grown and learned, through trial and error, how to be empathetic. She sat with Kuvira and talked her down, rather than violently condemning her. She knows that if she could find empathy for a woman as ruthless as her, she can certainly communicate with Asami.

After all, Asami is deeply important to her. She doesn’t want to lose this.

She _can’t_ lose this.

“Yeah,” she says, beaming. “Talk to me about _everything_. I never want to make you sad, Asami.” She knows that she’s had enough of the quiet, unspoken sadness in Asami’s beautiful eyes—she’ll do whatever she can to bring their light back for good.

“Well,” Asami says, tugging her closer. “It’s a good thing you make me so happy.”

She kisses Korra for the first time.

Her hands hook around Korra’s waist, and Korra slips her arms over Asami’s shoulders, locking her hands behind her neck. It’s a soft, gentle kiss—a light press of lips. Korra smiles into the whole thing. They part, but remain close, their noses almost touching. “Okay?” Asami whispers, and Korra closes her eyes, chuckling.

“You know it.”

Their mouths come together again, and Korra has the chance to really explore how soft her lips are compared to the boys she’s kissed in the past. Her mouth is warm and very gentle—it’s not awkward or wet. Korra is not the best kisser, but she lets herself relax and move with Asami, and for a moment, there is nothing but quiet bliss. She can’t remember the last time she felt so happy. They breathe together; Asami deepens the kiss. She feels a flicker of tongue on her lips, and she lightly scrapes her teeth over Asami’s bottom lip in reply. Asami shudders gently beneath her arms, and Korra feels lightheaded with the knowledge that _she_ did that.

The spirits cheer for them in the branches, and without breaking away from Asami, Korra lifts one hand and flips them off. Their audience laughs wildly at this.

When they finally split apart again, Asami smiles, and Korra, overcome with giddiness, reaches up and kisses her forehead, her temple, her cheek. Asami lifts her hand up and gently rubs away a tear from the corner of Korra’s eye with her thumb.

“Oh, gosh, I didn’t realize I was—” Korra jerks back, rubbing at her eyes. She’s not crying from sadness, but more from the _rush_ of it all—she’d fought a fierce and terrible battle, and she’d seen Varrick get married just outside the ruins, and now, suddenly, she has a girlfriend.

 _Girlfriend_ —she rolls the word over in her mind, enjoying the dazed delight that it brings her. A _girlfriend_.

When she meets Asami’s eyes, she knows Asami understands.

“Get a room!” jeers a lemur spirit from above, likely rehashing a phrase it overheard in the human world, and Korra shakes her head, still grinning.

“We should probably move on,” she says, embarrassed and yet joyful. “Let’s find a place to set up camp for tonight.”

“Sounds good,” Asami agrees. She holds Korra’s hand again, and Korra thrills with joy. “The weather is so nice…let’s sleep under the stars.”

Korra grins indulgently at Asami and nods. “Fine by me. I didn’t bring a tent with me, anyway.” She pauses. “On second thought, I don’t even think I brought a blanket.”

Asami steps closer and nudges Korra’s shoulder with her own. “That’s fine. _You_ can keep me warm.”

The spirits all applaud once again, and, embarrassed, Korra pulls at her hand, leading her further into the forest, away from their cheers.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! This is my first fic in...oh, God, years. I think my last one went up on FF.net around 2006 or so. I sincerely hope you enjoyed the chapter - there is more to come, and the rating will most likely go up (because even if their romance in the spirit world is a bit of a slow burn, I doubt they'd let that precious time alone together go to waste!)
> 
> See you again soon!


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